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Flight to Baltimore carries 1970s wardrobe theme

Flight to Baltimore carries 1970s wardrobe theme

CHICAGO -- Prior to Saturday's contest, a smiling Chris Sale pointed to a pair of gold platform shoes sitting in his locker. Think Pee Wee Herman's shoes from the big shoe dance in his popular movie Pee Wee's Big Adventure.

Those shoes were part of Sale's wardrobe for the flight from Chicago to Baltimore, completing the wild 1970s golf attire worn by everyone in the traveling party. The clothes were provided by Loudmouth Golf, in an idea originally concocted by White Sox manager Robin Ventura, Minor League conditioning coordinator Dale Torborg and Loudmouth CEO Larry Jackson prior to Spring Training.

"They're in need of some loosening of the restraints right now," White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. "So, yeah, they are dressing in some loudmouth clothing."

Ventura claimed to never have worn such clothing by choice but was not be exempt this time around. The clothes were designed for each player by size and style. For example, catcher A.J. Pierzynski's pants were in Florida Gators colors, while reliever Matt Thornton's pants had Michigan Wolverines colors to represent their college football allegiance. Sale had dollar signs on his pants, signifying he's "money" on the mound.

"They made sure that I was not missing out. Nobody is missing out," Ventura said. "Even playing, we did stuff like this, whether it's rookie stuff or guys doing stuff. It's fun to just be able to do it and loosen them up and let them have a little fun."

"You know we're all fans because anytime you get out of wearing a suit, we're up for it," White Sox captain Paul Konerko said. "As you see in here, it's pretty light and everybody's having a good time with it."